Leadville woman sentenced to 18 years for child abuse

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LEADVILLE, Colorado - Lake County social services took a 7-month-old boy away from his parents, placing him with his aunt, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison for abusing the child so seriously that he went blind.

Shawna Nacke, of Leadville, is the child's aunt. The jury that convicted her agreed with prosecutors that she shook the baby, leaving it blind. She tried to blame the injuries on the child's biological father, who had been alone with the child the previous evening.

The conviction and sentencing was one of the final cases of Mark Hurlbert's tenure as district attorney.

"It is a significant amount of time for what she did. Ultimately the child may recover, but it'll be a long process," Hurlbert said.

The boy was shaken enough that he suffered "significant" brain swelling and had to have surgery to relieve the pressure, Hurlbert said.

The jury was out less than two hours before coming back with guilty verdicts on all three felony counts. Nacke could have received up to 32 years in prison.